Aluminum wire OK on Neutral/Negative and Ground busbars in E-Panel & MNPV?

Started by jnh, December 14, 2012, 11:15:33 PM

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jnh

Is it acceptable to land Aluminum wire runs on the bus bars inside an MNPV combiner and/or an E-Panel?  If so, is this documented anywhere, in case an inspector questions it?  I notice the large-gauge positive lug on the MNPV3's postive bus (that fingered metal piece fitting the tops of the breakers) is labeled Al/Cu, but I don't see any indication for the various bus bars.

My underground feed from the array location is direct-burial 1/0 Al (with #2AWG ground).  I'm planning to put an MNPV3 box at each end of that line, one on a pole at the array site in its intended role as a combiner (terminating flexible #10 USE-2 lines from the panels), and the other on the wall of the house opposite the E-Panel inside with just a single breaker fitted as a PV Disconnect.  The few feet from there, through the wall up and to the E-panel will be #6 copper in liquidtight flex conduit.

Does this sound reasonable?

The only Aluminum I'd like to land in the E-Panel itself is a run of #6/6/6 type SE cable that I have on hand, and want to run back to my office to power some DC loads.  That will be fed from a 20-Amp MNEPV DIN rail breaker (loads are small, but I want to keep voltage drop down).  I know I'll need a transition to copper for that via split bolt, etc., since the MNEPV is marked Cu only, but can the DC- and Ground conductors go directly to their respective buses, using Noalox compound in the hole?

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